1. Symbolism.Friday was the day of Christ’s passion and death. When we do some kind of penance on Friday, we recall His sacrifice. When we abstain from flesh foods, we specifically recall the sacrifice of His body. (This is why cold-blooded flesh foods, like fish, are okay.)

3. Solidarity. Friday abstinence is like ashes on Ash Wednesday. It’s part of one’s Catholic identity. A single shared sacrifice is more powerful of us than the more generic doing-of-something-penitential on Fridays.

I’m convinced. Dearest and I are going meatless on Fridays from now on, just like when we were kids.

——————-

*It is inappropriate to do penance on a solemnity.A solemnity is a very special feast day. Most solemnities are one day long, but the two greatest solemnities in the Catholic calendar — Easter and Christmas — last for eight days.

The eighth day is called “octave day” and the days in between are said to be “within the octave.” The days within the octaves are “little” solemnities; the first and eighth days are “big” solemnities.

Any Friday that falls within the octaves of Easter or Christmas are not days of abstinence or penance.

“My administration has offered a new vision: the well-being of the American citizen and worker will be placed second to none. Since day one I have been fighting for the hardworking people of this country. This week we took historic action to continue delivering on that promise.”

President Trump and his aides succeeded in negotiating the releaseof Aya Hijazi, 30, a U.S. citizen, as well as her husband, Mohamed Hassanein, who is Egyptian, and four other humanitarian workers being held in an Egyptian prison.

Last Sunday, a court in Cairo dropped all charges against Hijazi and the others. Trump dispatched a U.S. government aircraft to Cairo to bring Hijazi and her family to Washington. They arrived yesterday.

The Obama administration had unsuccessfully pressed Sissi’s government for the releaseof these good souls who had been caring for abandoned and impoverished children in Cairo.

They were sent to prison without a shred of evidence, possibly because their work highlighted Egypt’s miserable record in caring for its own street children. In prison, they were allegedly abused at the hands of prison guards.

OK, the title was just a hook to get you to pay attention. Like having a sale on milk, knowing you’ll spend more at the grocery while you save a quarter on a gallon of milk. This is just the typical scattershot nonsense that is my contribution to the chaos.

Trump Personally Works Deal To Rescue American Aid Worker Held For 3 Years In Egypt
WILL TRUMP GET ANY CREDIT FOR THIS? DON’T BE SILLY.Donald Trump’s administration has secured the freedom of an Egyptian-US charity worker who was detained for nearly three years in Cairo.
Aya Hijazi, 30, was flown back to the US on Thursday night with her family on a US government jet.
Ms Hijazi, whose charity cared for street children, faced child abuse charges branded false by rights groups.
Her release was reportedly agreed before Mr Trump met Egyptian President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi this month.http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-39670101?ocid=socialflow_twitter

REMEMBER WHEN OBAMA GOT THE THREE HOSTAGES FREED BY IRAN AS PART OF THE NUCLEAR DEAL?ROBERT LEVENSON WAS STILL BEING HELD AFTER MORE THAN 9 YEARS.
‘WHAT ABOUT THE JEW?’
‘F*** HIM’
FBI: Jewish American in Iran longest held hostage in US historyKerry confirmed Iran had pledged to help locate Levinson.
“As the president has said, and as I have told the Levinson family when I have met with them, we will never forget Bob, and we will not rest until the Levinson family is whole again,” he said in a statement.http://www.timesofisrael.com/fbi-jewish-american-in-iran-longest-held-hostage-in-us-history/
THIS STORY IS FROM MARCH OF LAST YEAR. OBAMA NEVER GOT HIM FREED BECAUSE HE REALLY DIDN’T CARE. HE DID, HOWEVER, SWAP 5 TOP AL QUAEDA COMMANDERS FOR A DESERTER, SO HE HAD THAT GOING FOR HIM.

Students vote to give blacks free tuition at Western Kentucky UniversityThe school’s Student Government Association passed a resolution by 19-10 supporting slavery reparations for black students in the form of free tuition and free access to the public Bowling Green campus.
The resolution also recommends that the university create a task force to “assess the feasibility of test-optional admissions and geographically-weighted admissions,” claiming that some standardized testing poses a disadvantage for needy students and perpetuates inequality and “white supremacy,” The Bowling Green Daily News reported.
“We demand reparations for the systemic denial of access to high quality educational opportunities in the form of full and free access for all black people (including undocumented, currently and formerly incarcerated people to Western Kentucky University),” the resolution reads, according to the Daily News.http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2017/apr/20/western-kentucky-university-students-vote-to-give-/

“FREE TUITION as Reparations?” Tucker Tries His Best With Liberal College Student

I’M THROWING THIS IN…FOR BALANCE
Teacher Allegedly Banned Students From Wearing Crosses
But allegedly promotes LGBT causes in class.
Liberty Counsel, a nonprofit litigation group that promotes religious freedom, in a letter to Hillsborough County Public Schools Superintendent Jeff Eakins detailed math teacher Lora Jane Riedas’ actions.
The letter claims Riedas told at least three students they could not wear their Christian crosses.
“We write on behalf of parents of children in the classroom of teacher Lora Jane Riedas, a math teacher at Riverview High School, who report that Ms. Riedas has prohibited at least three children from wearing Christian cross necklaces in her classroom, claiming on occasion that they are ‘gang symbols,’ “ wrote Liberty Counsel.http://dailycaller.com/2017/04/20/teacher-allegedly-banned-students-from-wearing-crosses/

Caitlin (FKA Bruce) Jenner took the final step to becoming a “woman” in January when doctors performed a clipadickfromme and replaced it with a fake vijayjay. Rumor has it she/he is considering posing nude in Sports illustrated with the Olympic medal won while it was a man.
Report: Caitlyn Jenner To Pose Nude Like Kim K.
Caitlyn Jenner wants to break the internet like Kim K.
Jenner plans on posing nude sometime this year, just as his step-daughter Kim Kardashian West did on the viral Paper magazine cover in 2014, says a new report from Naughty Gossip.
“Caitlyn Jenner had a slow 2016, but she is planning a major comeback in 2017 with her first ever naked photo shoot,” reports the publication.
Apparently, Jenner is excited to show off his new body.
Jenner was a dominate athlete in the 1970s, taking home the Olympic gold medal for the decathlon in ’76, while going by the name Bruce. The former husband to reality star and “momager” Kris Jenner decided to publicly transition into a “woman” in 2015, becoming an instant media darling and gracing the cover of Vanity Fair to officially announce his new first name: Caitlyn.
Jenner, a man, was named Glamour’s “Woman of the Year” in 2015 and took home ESPN’s 2015 “Arthur Ashe Award for Courage,” edging out courageous college basketball superstar Lauren Hill, a cancer research activist and eventual 19-year-old brain cancer victim.

Caitlyn Jenner NOT Posing Nude, Despite Daily Mail ClaimGossip Cop, however, looked into this latest round of nude photo shoot rumors, and there’s no truth to it, naked or otherwise. Every single Jenner source Gossip Cop approached told us it was a bogus claim. Additionally, Jenner’s own rep exclusively assured us the paper’s report was “100 percent not true.”http://www.gossipcop.com/caitlyn-jenner-not-posing-nude-daily-mail-naked-photo-shoot/

Harvey Weinstein complains of R rating for trans teen film
HARVEY IS MALARIA OBUMBLES’ BOSS.
Sarah Kate Ellis, president of the LGBTQ advocacy group GLAAD, sent a letter earlier this week to MPAA officials urging reconsideration of the R rating.
“All that differentiates the film from other PG-13 films is a few instances of strong language,” she said in the letter. “The film does not include graphic violence, drug use, or nudity — it merely portrays a modern family.”
SURE… DOESN’T EVERY MODERN FAMILY HAVE AT LEAST ONE DRAG QUEEN?http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_FILM_RATINGS_CONTROVERSY?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2017-04-20-19-51-20

For eight years, Barack Obama virtually papered the world with his own image. Every holiday featured yet another “Look At Me” image, regardless of who or what was being honored. Inside the White House, the walls were covered with large framed photos of him and, in the History section of the White House website, paragraphs about Obama were added to the ends of other president’s biographies.

I am often reminded of how self-centered the previous president was whenever I watch a video of President Trump, who routinely hands the mic over to visitors to say whatever they want. From the surprised reactions of some of these people, it is clear their comments are totally unscripted.

I was reminded of President Narcissist again today when I opened my 1600 Daily Email and saw the Photo of the Day. I gotta say … it just makes a really NICE CHANGE, dontchathink?

New England Patriots Coach Bill Belichick delivers remarks during the team’s visit to the White House celebrating their Super Bowl LI victory on the South Lawn, Wednesday, April 19, 2017. (Official White House Photo by Shealah Craighead).

“Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.”